Oracle Demonstrates Continued Momentum for Oracle Projects in Engineering And Construction Industry

LONDON, ORACLE APPSWORLD, June 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ( http://www.oracle.com/tellmemore/?1818908 ) Oracle Corp. , the world's largest enterprise software company, today announced that a growing number of leading engineering, construction and consulting companies are leveraging the Oracle Projects family of applications to increase the profitability and performance levels of their project-centric, global operations. Companies such as Black & Veatch, CDM, CH2M HILL, HNTB, Mustang Engineering, Parsons Brinckerhoff and Skanska use or plan to use Oracle Projects to manage thousands of multimillion-dollar projects per year.

Faced with increased competition and economic instability, today's engineering, construction and consulting firms are striving to reduce risk through improved visibility into enterprise information, elimination of redundant data sources and standardization of business processes. By enabling companies to centralize project information and integrate all cost driving components, Oracle Projects streamlines the full project lifecycle -- from conception through execution and facilities management. Oracle Projects also integrates with other enterprise operations, making relevant, timely information available to all project stakeholders.

Black & Veatch

"The Oracle E-Business Suite is flexible enough to give us everything we need," said Clifford Johnson, vice president of Business Systems at Black & Veatch. "Oracle has lived up to our expectations, saving more than $500,000 in annual IT costs through hardware and software consolidation and providing instant Web access to project and financial information from anywhere in the world."

On an average day, Black & Veatch, a leading global engineering and construction company, has more than 2,500 projects underway -- everything from designing and building power plants and water and wastewater treatment facilities to managing communication networks and transportation hubs. The company relies on Oracle's sophisticated project management capabilities to manage its project-intensive, multinational business. Using Oracle Projects, Black & Veatch has established consistent business practices and accounting controls worldwide, improved and simplified project accounting, made significant efficiency gains in accounting procedures and reduced IT staffing, in addition to significantly lowering IT costs.

CH2M HILL

"The flexibility Oracle gives CH2M HILL extends beyond reporting," said Jim Butt, information technology director for CH2M HILL. "In our business, we constantly have to adapt to changes in the marketplace. Over the years we've created and acquired companies and have done many reorganizations. Oracle lets us pick up the pace of those changes and gives us an edge in our very competitive industry. It's simply the most powerful solution in the market today."

CH2M HILL, a leading global provider of engineering, construction, operations, and related services, manages over 10,000 projects for its clients at any given time. CH2M HILL is using Oracle Projects to manage industrial and public works projects from initial marketing and project acquisition, through all phases of delivery, including planning, financing, design, construction, and operations and maintenance, for its more than 4,000 clients. Since implementing Oracle Projects, CH2M HILL has benefited from Oracle's scalability, functionality and multi-ledger data model. The company can now complete weekly/monthly processing and reporting, based on over 1 million transactions per month, in less than six hours. The Oracle applications have supported over $1 billion in business growth over seven years with few IT staff additions, steadily reduced days sales outstanding, automated billing processes to ensure accuracy down to the penny and provided compliance with federal contract audits.

Skanska

"Whether we're building a highway in Chile or a shopping complex in Budapest, our projects are about more than construction," said Peder Sjolander, director of information technology for Skanska Sweden. "We listen closely to our clients to make sure we meet or exceed their expectations. Oracle's start-to-finish solution plays a critical role in enabling us to do just that. With Oracle Projects, project managers have the visibility they need to accurately forecast and monitor all aspects of a project, helping Skanska to successfully deliver projects to our clients on time and budget."

Global construction industry leader Skanska uses Oracle Projects to provide its project managers and company management with up-to-date information on current and planned construction projects.

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